Welcome to Keisen Associates! Keisen means "fountain of blessings" in Japanese. Our mission is to be a wellspring of legal services for all matters of Japanese intellectual property law.
Keisen Associates (formerly Omori & Yaguchi) is a Tokyo-based Japanese intellectual property law firm with an office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We offer a broad range of Japanese and international legal support in patent, design, and trademark law. Our services include including prior art searches, in-house technical translations, international licensing, and legal consultation for business development and technology transfer in Japan. Our highly skilled attorneys and patent agents are supported by a team of technical advisers, translators, and administrative staff who are fluent in English. We are delighted to provide our clients with seamless, efficient, and cost-effective service that flows into all areas of intellectual property protection in Japan and beyond.
IP News
Japan Signals Potential Copyright Law Revisions in Response to Generative AI
We would like to share an important update from Japan that may significantly affect companies involved in generative AI development, content creation, and data analytics. Revisions to Japan’s Copyright Law in Response to the Rise of Generative AI In recent…
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Keisen to attend INTA 2025
Attendees from Keisen Yoshiko Osawa and Kurara Yamagishi will be attending the INTA (International Trademark Association) 2025 Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA on May 17-21, 2025. This page has been created to facilitate arranging meetings with us.
Keisen to attend INTA 2024
Attendees from Keisen Yoshiko Osawa and Kurara Yamagishi will be attending the INTA (International Trademark Association) 2025 Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA on May 17-21, 2025. This page has been created to facilitate arranging meetings with us.
New Trademark Policy, April 2024: Personal Names Easier to Register in Japan
If you do not want to search through databases and lists of names of residents of Japan to get a trademark, you can breathe a sigh of relief–if you file from April of this year. What’s the Matter with the…
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Government Policy, IP News, Madrid Protocol, Madrid Protocol Provisional Rejections, News, Trademark Filing Requirements, Trademarks, What's New, What's New
Indonesia, Thailand Continuing Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Program with Japan Patent Office beyond 2024
Indonesia’s Directorate General of Intellectual Property (DGIP) and Thailand’s Department of Intellectual Property in Thailand (DIP) are extending their Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) trial arrangements with the Japan Patent Office 3 years and 2 years, respectively, from the start of…
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Accelerated Examination, Asia, Government Policy, International Agreements, IP News, News, Request for Examination, What's New
Q&A: Multi-Multi Claims in Japanese Patent Applications
1. What is a “Multi-Multi Claim”? “Multi-multi claim” means “any dependent claim that refers to more than one other claim in the alternative (‘multiple dependent claim’) which depends from any other multiple dependent claim”.[1] A multi-multi claim hence exponentially increases…
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Amendments, Divisional Applications, Government Policy, Japan National Phase Entry, Office Actions, Patent, What's New
“GODZILLA”(r) Chomps Up Demolition Cutter Trademark “GUZZILLA” in Japan IP High Court
Japan’s famous monster “Godzilla,” that is, its trademark, rampages again. On July 19, 2023, Japan’s IP High Court judged in favor of the Japan Patent Office (JPO) Invalidation of Registration for another trademark, “GUZZILLA.” What’s GUZZILLA? GUZZILLA is the name…
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IP High Court, IP News, Japan, News, Trademark Litigation, Trademarks, What's New, What's New
DWANGO Vs. FC2 Decision by IP High Court, Japan, Means Protection for Patented Programs “Imported” from Foreign Servers
Japan’s IP High Court (IPHC) is setting a trend to deny patented programs even if sent from servers outside of Japan, with its May 26, 2023 case DWANGO v. FC2. The IPHC rejects immunity to FC2 simply on grounds that…
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Business and IP, Government Policy, IP High Court, IP News, Litigation and Negotiation, News, Patent Infringement, What's New
Latest Summary of COVID-19 Responses by the Japan Patent Office and IP High Court
This is our latest update from April 21, 2023 (Japan time). We regularly check for substantial changes to JPO policy regarding COVID-19 and let you know here if there are such. The most recent major policy changes as far as…
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Asia, COVID-19, Government Policy, News, Reinstatement (after a Missed Deadline), Society and Culture, What's New
New Policy, April 2023: Japan Patent Office Allows Suspension of Examination for Divisional Application, Where Parent Application is Pending Appeal
Worried what to do about a divisional patent application while the parent application appeal is pending in Japan? How to handle the fork in the road? Starting from April 1, 2023, for divisional applications filed in conjunction with a Request…
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Divisional Applications, Government Policy, IP News, News, Patent, Request for Examination, What's New
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Faces Seizure of More Patents & Trademarks in Korea
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) is again on the defensive trying to avoid loss of multiple patents and trademarks in the Republic of Korea (South Korea), against victims of MHI’s forced labor up to 1945 Korean Daejeon District Court approved seizure…
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New Rule, April 2023: Reinstatement for Patent Applications to Meet “Unintentional” Instead of “Due Care” Standards
April 1, 2023 marks an important shift for those who might realize, with dread, that a key patent deadline in Japan has been missed. The standard for Reinstatement (Revival with a late filing) is softening from “Justifiable” to “Unintentional” Delay….
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30-month deadline, Allowance and Registration, English Language Applications, Filing Translation, Government Policy, IP News, Japan National Phase Entry, Language Translation, News, Ownership Rights and Licensing, Reinstatement (after a Missed Deadline), Request for Examination, What's New